December 19, 2005
To: Deputy Heads of Institutions Under the Financial Administration Act, Schedules I, I.1 and II
On 21 October 2005, as part of its Management Improvement Agenda, the Government
made a commitment to “make information on grants and contributions publicly available on its Web sites through proactive
disclosure, initially for those above $25,000.” The purpose of this initiative is to further promote transparency in
government activities and to enhance public access to grant and contribution awards information.
Effective for the last fiscal quarter of 2006 (January, February and March), departments and agencies listed in Schedules I,
I.1 and II of the Financial Administration Act will
be required to report information on the awarding of grants and contributions by their respective institutions. Reporting
shall be on a quarterly basis, corresponding to the government fiscal year quarters. Grant and contribution awards
information must be posted on the institution's Web site within sixty calendar days of the end of each reporting period. The
first posting is due by 31 May 2006.
This new requirement will be phased in over time, starting with a threshold of $25,000 that will be reduced to $10,000 as our
systems become more efficient.
To ensure that information is gathered and presented consistently across government, institutions should collect and post the
following core information on their respective Web sites:
- Recipient Name
- Location
- Date
- Value
- Type (Grant or Contribution)
- Purpose
- Comments (if any)
For consistency and transparency purposes, and to facilitate public access, the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) has developed
the following Web site: http://publiservice.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pd-cp/, which offers a link to a guidance
document and features a template to support posting grant and contribution awards on-line. This Web site also includes
answers to frequently asked questions and will be updated periodically to deal with
developments as they arise.
We look forward to working with you and with your institutions as we implement this important initiative. If your
officials have any questions regarding the new grant and contribution awards disclosure requirement, they should first search
through the available information on the Web site and seek interpretive policy guidance from the
appropriate functional experts within their respective institutions. They may also seek advice/interpretation preferably by e-mail
by contacting Suzanne Murtagh of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, at Murtagh.Suzanne@tbs-sct.gc.ca
or by phone at (613) 957-9677. For guidance related to the Access to
Information Act or the Privacy Act, they may contact
Francis Larose, of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, preferably by e-mail at Larose.Francis@tbs-sct.gc.ca,
or by phone at (613) 946-4945.
Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to remind you that the requirement for posting Proactive Disclosure information
remains in effect during the election period. All information should be posted according to the specific schedule for each
initiative. Please visit the Proactive Disclosure support site for further information and recent
updates.
Wayne G. Wouters
Secretary of the Treasury Board
cc: Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Coordinators, Senior Financial Officers (SFOs), Senior Full Time Financial
Officers (SFFOs), Heads of Communications (Assistant Deputy Ministers, Executive Directors and Directors General), Regional
Federal Councils
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